Student Visa – Ireland: Process & Cost
Ireland is a small and beautiful European country which houses some of the best universities and educational institutes making it a preferred location to pursue higher education by many foreigners. The official languages of Ireland are Irish and English and the capital is Dublin. As it is situated in the North-Europe the currency used here is Euros. It is preferred by the students because the tuition fee and accommodation charges are quite low as compared to other places and it offers great education in the field of Science and technology along with other fields.
Step by step process to get the student visa for Ireland:
- The process begins with application to the university or college to get the offer for enrolment. This is very crucial step as everything is dependent on this. You can apply offline or online by filling up the application form and attaching required documents; Educational qualifications, Resume, SOP, Work Experience (if any), Passport, two Letters of Reference, IELTS/PTE/TOEFL scorecard. Some of the universities charge application fee which you will have to pay if applicable.
- After receiving the offer for enrolment, you have to pay one year’s tuition fee or at least 6000 Euros to the universityto enroll yourself for the course. This is mandatory before filing the visa application.
- After making the payment, you need to file visa application in person at the VFS center at least 8-6 weeks prior to the travel date. If you apply before 3 weeks’ or less than that time, it will not be considered. For this you are supposed to make the payment for the VFS services and the visa fee online.
- The confirmation of the VFS payment must be enclosed with the application. Also, you need to provide the Appointment confirmation, Supplementary Student Application Form, Passport with photocopy of the front and back, Original Police Clearance certificate from Passport office and all the certificates used while applying for the enrolment letter (educational as well as financial proofs). Medical insurance is also mandatory and you will have to submit the documents related to that too.You should have one set of photocopies of all the documents along with the originals.
- Once all that is submitted, there is a weak possibility of visa interview. If the embassy wishes to have that then you have to be present for that, else you just need to wait to get the approval of the application.
Steps to be taken after getting the student visa& arriving in Ireland:
Garda Registration:
The initial visa that a student gets is only valid for 30 to 90 days, therefore once you arrive in Ireland you need to get the Garda National Immigration Bureau (GNIB) registration done.
Here are the documents needed for that:
- Passport
- Student Identification Card issued by the university or college where student has enrolled
- A letter from the office of the Registrar confirming the enrolment of the student along with the start and end date of the course he or she has enrolled for.
- Irish bank statement showing the presence of the amount to be used for living expenses which should be at least 3000 Euros.
- The student also needs to pay the fee for this registration which is 300 Euros through credit or debit card.
The above mentioned process needs to be followed properly to get the study visa for Ireland. It is advisable that you pay the complete tuition fee for one year to get faster visa. Below is the brief synopsis of the cost that one has to incur for the process. It is an approximate amount which is subject to change by the authorities in Ireland. This does not include the fees and payments to the university or the educational institute and other expenses like living cost or travel.
Estimation of Student Visa Application Cost – Ireland |
|
| University Application Fee | If Applicable |
| Visa Fee (Multiple entry) | 9000 Indian Rupees |
| VFS Service charges | 3518 Indian Rupees |
| Mandatory services | Courier charges – 500 Indian Rupees |
| VFS Check &Verification of all other visa applications – 4195 Indian Rupees | |
| Other VFS services | As applicable |
| Acceptable Modes of Payment | Visa/Master, credit/debit card accepting international payments |
| After Arrival in Ireland | |
| Garda Registration | 300 Euros (by credit/debit card only) |